Prologue (10)

The inside of Qingrad was just as I expected it to be; stone foundations with plastered walls made the buildings rather bland, though the pops of color from the various cloths and tapestries that the people displayed proudly outside their homes and stores made up for that.

Cobbled stone roads led into the heart of the city, and they were wide enough for two carriages to comfortably travel side by side, with more than enough space for people to go about their business as well.

Stalls lined the roadside, manned by vendors who shouted towards the soldiers in attempts to earn themselves some coin, peddling their wares to whoever would listen; meats, hides, fruits and vegetables, beads, cloth, you name it, they were selling it.

And they were selling it for a better price than whomever you might have been trying to buy from instead, creating a rather cutthroat environment as they tried to outsell their rivals and offer the best 'deals' for your coin.

In other words... it was a small Fantasy town that was thriving, and the abundance of materials and items waiting to be browsed were numerous, as were the quests and NPC's to meet and chat with; anyone here could offer a quest of legendary proportions, and all you needed to do was ask around and hope that you were the first to catch that thread.

And since it seemed like I was the first player to enter Qingrad, I had the entire city to myself for the moment, and I wanted to take advantage of that before it changed.

The player base was unknown to me at the moment, but considering the hype behind the release, there had to be millions of players inside the game already, and millions more waiting to log on after their shifts later tonight.

And with a world this size, I might actually go a few days without seeing anyone, and I could certainly go a few days without seeing more than a dozen players at most on this side of the world; I was far from the nostalgic zones and easier areas, and the Zargrina Dukedom wasn't a noteworthy spot thanks to its neutral stance and medium level requirements, so I hope I would be the only one here for a few days at least...

"Kira~! You weren't lying when you said that you're decent with a blade! Not too bad for a stranger! Where'd you learn to fight?"

Alessia's smile was almost infectious, the scarred blonde grinning at me as she walked beside me, still rather curious about me.

My features remained as neutral as before, but I still felt a slight warmth in my heart as I replied to the NPC, finding her to be a rather fun person so far.

"Self taught, Miss Alessia. Never knew my parents, and just did what I could to earn myself a spot in this world. Monster hunting was lucrative, so I taught myself to fight and got some gear together before setting out... Wanted to be somewhere slightly peaceful, and the Zargrina Dukedom seemed like a good choice."

Cringe, I know, but it makes things so much easier to explain if I just 'off' my parents, while the drifter story makes it impossible to figure out where I came from and the like, so it worked for me.

"Ah, alright. Pretty good technique, and your magic's good too! Earned yourself what, like eight or nine Goblin kills?"

I nodded, the small leather pouch that Alessia had lent me carrying my spoils from today, which equaled to about nine silvers of profit for such and easy mission; though it might be something like eight and a half depending on taxes...

Damn taxes still ruining games too...

Behind us, one of the soldiers grinned as they asked "Miss Kira! Why don't you join us for dinner tonight? We'll cover for you, since you helped out a decent amount! Not too bad for a greenhorn!"

Alessia grinned as well, her thin lips pulling back to reveal her pearly teeth as she nodded in agreement, though she glanced at Trania and asked "S'that alright with you, Talon Master~?"

The Catkin glanced over at us for a moment before nodding, rasping "She did well enough. However, since it's your idea..."

"We got it Talon Master! Haha~ Kira, what do you say?"

Finding myself to be the center of attention, I nodded, making the soldiers cheer, though I asked "Could someone point me in the direction of the temple first though?"

"Of course! It's next to the Supply Depot, so we'll be going with you! Turning in the ears first before getting changed into civilian garb and all..."

The soldiers grinned at one another as they began to brag to one another about the money they earned today, with Alessia and Trania discussing how to split the reward for the Chief between the two of them as we walked through Qingrad.

It was clean and populated, the people taking care of their home and enjoying the cool breeze as they walked around, each of the buildings being thoroughly planned out and utilized by the populace to maximize the space they had.

Everything about Qingrad was subdued, common, and blended together, but the town was everything I wanted from a starting location, even more so when we made our way into the heart of Qingrad and made our way towards the Supply Depot.

A large fortress of stone brick and magic circles, the Supply Depot was secured and bustling with activity, the soldiers of the Corps of the Beast going in and out to get their pay and gear.

It was utilitarian and spartan in appearance, contrasting the beautiful temple beside it dedicated to the many Gods and Goddesses of Eden, its steeple and glass windows making it an elegant, graceful building, especially compared to the squat fortress beside it.

Going into the Supply Depot first, we were greeted with the sight of dozens of tables laden with soldiers chatting amongst themselves, working on their weapons and armor as well as counting coin, while long lines were stationed in front of the many counters lining the walls.

Trania and Alessia led us towards one of the empty counters, the bored Foxkin woman leaning on the counter waiting for someone to approach shooting up with a grin as she saw us.

"Quartermaster Hu! We completed our mission to eradicate those Goblins!"

The Foxkin - a mature, curvy woman with graying hair and sharp brown eyes - grinned harder as she gestured for the two Talon Masters to approach, her voice melodious as she replied "Good! That's another mark for the two of you! Good job, Talon Masters! I assume you want pay first?"

She didn't even wait for a response before crouching behind the counter, fiddling with something before standing back up with a few pouches, which jangled together as she placed them on the counter.

"Come forwards then! One at a time."

The payment process took mere minutes to complete, the Foxkin efficiently jotting everything down as she handed the soldiers their pay, both for the mission and for the Goblin Ears, though she frowned when I approached.

"Quartermaster Hu, this is a helper we picked up along the way; wanted entrance into the city. Showed quite the competent display too. I'll vouch for her for now."

Alessia slipped forwards and smiled at the Foxkin, who nodded before looking at me, saying "Don't do anything stupid, half blood."

My lips twitched at the blatant disdain she displayed, but I just took a deep breath and nodded, opening the pouch and showing the ears inside, which the Foxkin counted before handing me eight and a half silvers; eight normal silvers, and a smaller one, which was worth 50 coppers instead of 100.

Accepting them, I thanked the woman and turned away, Alessia walking me to the door and continuing to chat.

"Sorry 'bout that. She's had a few run ins with humans before that ended... less than well. We all have, honestly, and your scent is clearly human, though the other half is... interesting. Some will be like Quartermaster Hu, but not a lot... She's a good person, just... been hurt one too many times."

"It's fine. I expected to face some disdain. Now if you'll excuse me..."

I stepped out into the open, and Alessia added "Make your way back here at dusk, Kira, if you really want to drink and dine with us. We weren't joking about it."

The blonde Dogkin woman smiled at me before turning back into the Supply Depot, leaving me to travel over to the temple as I prepared to level up, my experience looking rather... lopsided.

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Plan is for three more before we get into the book; this is all an introduction and the like, to briefly show the systems and characters before it all... changes.

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